AAAAH!! Indie Horror Hits – Volume 1 Complete
My good friend, Miguel Gallego of AAAAAH!! Indie Horror Hits, just let me know about a new indie horror movie collection that fans will want to add to their collection. AAAAAH!! Indie Horror Hits is a new feature length collection of award winning independent short horror films coming to DVD in September 2008 – just […]
Horror and Religion’s Intimate Connection
In the past I’ve mentioned an interesting website that I stumbled upon, Constructing Horror, a website that serves as a resource for horror writers. One of the perspectives that they address is the connection between religion and horror, an area of research interest for me, and their current e-newsletter touched on this topic with the […]
Kids in Horror: Reflections on Why They Get Under Our Skin
Regular readers of this blog might recall that in a previous post I mentioned my involved with LOTT D, a group of horror bloggers committed to excellence as they rise above the all-too-common froth of superficial commentary in the blogosphere. From time to time the members of LOTT D emphasize the community aspect of their […]
The Mist: Thrills, Chills and Thought-Provoking Social Critique
I am usually a late commentator on films since I watch few at the theaters and prefer to wait until they come out on DVD. This provides me with a cost savings, and enables me to read reviews and commentary so as not to waste resources on bad films. This last weekend I was able […]
Sacred Terror Book Due Fall 2008
Long time readers of this blog might recall my two previous interviews with Douglas Cowan on the topic of horror films and their connection to religion and fear. Doug shared his insights on these topics as they related to his book on the topic Sacred Terror: Religion and Horror on the Silver Screen (Baylor University […]
Small Screen Treasures: Two Gems of Seventies Horror Television
In my previous post I focused on a classic horror film of the 1970s, and in this post I shift to commentary on horror television from the same decade. Last weekend I watched a series of VH1 programs that looked back at various aspects of the 1970s. Although I was born in the mid-1960s I […]
The Legend of Hell House as Neglected and Eclipsed Classic
Of course, there are a variety of factors that contribute to the success or lack of success in films as they are received by viewing audiences. Sometimes a film that is not well received is poorly written, acted, or directed, and sometimes all of these aspects are well done, but other factors related to the […]
The Monster Show: Horror, Ritual and Pilgrimage
One of the books I have been reading in my spare time is one that I received as a Christmas gift, David J. Skal, The Monster Show: A Cultural History of Horror, rev. ed (New York: Faber and Faber, 2001). This book does a nice job of bringing together various elements of approach to the […]
Culture and Horror: Valerie Wee Sui-Lin, Ringu and The Ring
The Popular Culture Association has a subset of presentations that touch on horror and science fiction in popular culture. One of the more interesting presentations presented by Valerie Wee Su-Lin of looked at differing cultural aspects of the Japanese horror film Ringu constrasted with the American film The Ring. Valerie is an assistant professor in […]
Metaphysical Media and a Typology of Media Portraits of the Witch
As readers may recall, I have been interested in the intersection between various expressions of so-called alternative spiritualities, such as Western esotericism, Neo-Paganism, and Wicca, with popular culture and the media. Of particular interest is how film and television has depicted Paganism, and more specifically, the figure of the Witch. Helen Berger was very helpful […]
